Roe vs. Wade was a landmark decision case by the Supreme Court that gave women the right and freedom to have an abortion until to the end of their first trimester without interference from the state.
On January 22, 1973 the Supreme Court overturned an 1857 Texas ruling that made abortion illegal except on the grounds to save the woman’s life or if it were in danger. Jane Roe was a single mother who filed suit against Texas on her behalf and other pregnant women. She viewed this law as unconstitutional which violated her First, Fourth, Fifth, Ninth and Fourteenth amendment. The court agreed that the Texas law was unconstitutional and terminating a pregnancy violated her rights of privacy. The court found that their interest regulating an abortion starts in the second trimester due to its relation to maternal health of the woman. The importance of imposing requirements such as licensing of those performing the procedures as well as regulating where an abortion takes place at. The interest by the state for sake of a potential human life starts in the third trimester as stated by the courts. This is fact because the fetus is viewed as viable which is capable of living outside the mother’s womb and is entitled for protection by the state.
I chose this summary because it’s a common issue that many women face daily in America and abroad. There are challenging circumstances which puts women in a situation to have to make a decision of whether or not to terminate a pregnancy. It’s not my judge to say which right or wrong, but I believe a responsible adult has the right to make their own choices.
